KIA FORTE · model year

2017 KIA FORTE

419 NHTSA complaints, 38 crash reports, and 3 active recalls for this specific cohort.

NHTSA overall rating

5 / 5 ★

New Car Assessment Program

The 2017KIAFORTE carries 419 consumer safety complaints in NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation database for this specific model-year cohort. Within that volume, owners reported 38 crashes, 14 fires, 36 injuries, and 6 fatalities. For crash performance, NHTSA's New Car Assessment Program gave this cohort an overall 5/5 rating, with 4/5 front crash, 5/5 side crash, and 4/5 rollover scores derived from standardized barrier and dynamic tests.

Component-level analysis is where model-year complaints become actionable: the top complaint category for the 2017 FORTE is engine with 139 filings, followed by unknown or other (48) and electrical system (42). Concentration in one or two component groups is the classic signature of a systemic defect; a flat distribution usually reflects normal aging, warranty complaints, or isolated build-plant variability. This model year has 3 active recall campaigns, which means the manufacturer is obligated to remedy the covered defect at no charge for the life of the vehicle — the full NHTSA campaign numbers are listed below.

NHTSA currently has 38 investigation files overlapping the 2017 FORTE, and 1 remain open. Owners comparing this cohort against neighboring years should pair the counters above with the complaint-by-year trend on the parent model page — a spike in a single year often tracks to a platform refresh, a new transmission supplier, or an updated ECU calibration. Use the related-complaint feed below to read raw owner narratives before deciding whether any pattern here affects your specific use case.

419
Complaints
38
Crashes
14
Fires
36
Injuries
6
Deaths
2017 KIA FORTE — NHTSA crash-test profile NHTSA NCAP crash-test star ratings for the 2017 KIA FORTE. Overall composite: 5.0 of 5 stars across 3 safety dimensions. Front CrashSide CrashRollover 5.0 NHTSA NCAP of 5 stars
  • Front Crash 4.0 ★
  • Side Crash 5.0 ★
  • Rollover 4.0 ★
NHTSA overall 5.0/5 stars, with front-crash, side-crash and rollover ratings from standardized NCAP barrier and dynamic tests.

Total Complaints

419 filings

Crashes Reported

38 reports

Source

NHTSA ODI

Federal complaints database

Complaints vs. fleet median (215)

Above median complaint volume — review patterns below.

NHTSA NCAP overall: 5/5 — Top NCAP rating · Front: 4/5 · Side: 5/5 · Rollover: 4/5

Complaints by Component

ComponentCount
ENGINE139
UNKNOWN OR OTHER48
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM42
EXTERIOR LIGHTING38
FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM29
AIR BAGS17
VEHICLE SPEED CONTROL15
POWER TRAIN12
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING10
STEERING9
VISIBILITY/WIPER8
STRUCTURE:BODY8
SERVICE BRAKES7
WHEELS6
ELECTRONIC STABILITY CONTROL (ESC)5

Recalls (3)

22V03100025/01/2022

AIR BAGS

Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain 2017-2019 Sedona, Soul, Soul EV, 2017-2018 Forte, and 2017 Forte Koup vehicles. The Air Bag Control Unit (ACU) cover may contact a memory chip on the printed circuit board and damage the electrical circuit. Circuit damage may result in deactivated air

21V26000013/04/2021

ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:ENGINE:OIL/LUBRICATION:PUMP

Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain 2017-2018 Forte vehicles equipped with a 2.0L Nu MPI engine. Foreign particles may stick inside the oil pump, which may cause an oil pump failure and engine damage.

21V62200009/08/2021

LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES:TRUNK LID:LATCH

Kia Motors America (Kia) is recalling certain 2016-2018 Forte 4-door, Forte Koup 2-door, and 2018-2019 Rio 4-door vehicles. The trunk latch may become damaged, preventing the opening of the trunk from the inside. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle

Recent Complaints

20260102UNKNOWN OR OTHER

I am emailing i have an issue with a my vehicle i took it in to the dealership and got the recalls performed and they still have not updated in the system i am trying to rent out my car on turo and am not able to do i also contacted the dealership and they said its all electronic what can i do to clear this up or speed it up am sorry am trying to get forward any sort of way you guys can help

20251218ENGINE

Not providing enough oil pressure for my timing to function correctly.

20251210UNKNOWN OR OTHER

Had to replace a P0014 Exhaust camshaft position timing VCT solenoid - over advanced (Bank1) last year on October 1,2024. Now 2025 December 8,2025 need a nothing camshaft position timing VCT solenoid and also says I need replace my engine. I think something is not right about the engine or something on the engine. Not sure but something is definitely wrong. Never had this kind of problem before , but no cars i've ever had.

20251202UNKNOWN OR OTHER

About three years ago the clear paint on my car started to peel on the mirrors and car handles. It's progressively gotten worse and now the roof and side mirrors only have patches left and driver side door has started peeling.

20251128FireUNKNOWN OR OTHER

My vehicle caught fire while driving also before fire vehicle started popping and stuttering rattling sound. I was on highway.

20251128FireENGINE

My vehicle caught fire while driving also before fire vehicle started popping and stuttering rattling sound. I was on highway.

20251128FireFUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM

My vehicle caught fire while driving also before fire vehicle started popping and stuttering rattling sound. I was on highway.

20251122AIR BAGS

There are 3 recalls on my engine type but kia dealership says no recalls,#21V6220000,#22V031000,#21V260000. ENGINE TYOE 2.0L NU MPI ENGINE(SC210),MY ph#XXX INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

20251122ENGINE

There are 3 recalls on my engine type but kia dealership says no recalls,#21V6220000,#22V031000,#21V260000. ENGINE TYOE 2.0L NU MPI ENGINE(SC210),MY ph#XXX INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

20251118ELECTRICAL SYSTEM

I have 2 problems with my 2017 Kia Forte sedan: 1) They have put an "environmentally friendly" coating on the wire harnesses under the front hood of the engine which emits a vanilla scent when warm and attracts rats that eat the wire harness when the vehicle is parked. They need to revert back to the original jacket material on the wire harnesses that don't attract rodents. I've spent hundreds of dollars repairing the wire harness, and it's an ongoing problem on wires I haven't replaced. The ones I've already replaced were with "original" materials that don't have the environmentally-friendly coating. 2) Paint (or clear coat?) peeling on the roof and door handles in less than 100,000 miles. I'm told this could be due to a faulty primer, but Kia won't do anything about it, as they say their paint warranty is only for 3 years or 36,000 miles, which is subpar.

20251118UNKNOWN OR OTHER

I have 2 problems with my 2017 Kia Forte sedan: 1) They have put an "environmentally friendly" coating on the wire harnesses under the front hood of the engine which emits a vanilla scent when warm and attracts rats that eat the wire harness when the vehicle is parked. They need to revert back to the original jacket material on the wire harnesses that don't attract rodents. I've spent hundreds of dollars repairing the wire harness, and it's an ongoing problem on wires I haven't replaced. The ones I've already replaced were with "original" materials that don't have the environmentally-friendly coating. 2) Paint (or clear coat?) peeling on the roof and door handles in less than 100,000 miles. I'm told this could be due to a faulty primer, but Kia won't do anything about it, as they say their paint warranty is only for 3 years or 36,000 miles, which is subpar.

20251117ENGINE

Engine light came on around 81k miles and I've replaced several components and it fixed then light would come back on. I kept up on oil changes frequently. I had the spark plugs, o2 sensors replaced twice. It would idle low and or stall. The engine started knocking at 135k I still owe 9k on loan and it's the 2.0L NU MPI M/T ENGINE. PLEASE RECALL IT ALREADY SO MANY OWNERS ARE BEING SCREWED ON THIS VEHICLE.

20251113ELECTRICAL SYSTEM:WIRING:CONNECTORS/PLUGS:ACCESORY POWER OUTLET/JACK/PORT/USB/SAE/CIGARETTE LIGHTER

The contact owns a 2017 Kia Forte. The contact stated that while driving with the phone plugged in on speaker, there was smoke coming from the adapter cord. The contact stated that the charger cord was melting. The adapter was unplugged by the driver. There were no warning lights illuminated. The local dealer was not contacted. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 141,224.

Mileage: 141,224

20251113ENGINE

Consumo excesivo de aceite / Defecto del motor - Kia Forte 2017 -Estimado NHTSA, Me gustaría informar de un problema de consumo excesivo de aceite en mi Kia Forte 2017, que parece estar relacionado con un defecto interno del motor similar a los problemas previamente identificados en otros motores Kia. Mi vehículo fue inspeccionado por un concesionario autorizado de Kia, Miami Lakes Kia (Florida). Realizaron una prueba oficial de consumo de aceite y confirmaron que el motor consume aproximadamente 1 litro de aceite cada 1.000 millas, lo que está muy por encima de los niveles normales. El concesionario recomendó reemplazar el motor debido al desgaste interno. Abrí un caso formal con Kia America (caso #25501358) antes de recibir su denegación. Kia America reconoció mi caso, pero más tarde declaró que mi vehículo está "fuera de garantía" y "no está incluido en el acuerdo o en la garantía extendida por consumo de aceite". A pesar de esto, el problema refleja claramente un defe

20251106SERVICE BRAKES

Was traveling on interstate inside lane in heavy traffic and all of a sudden lost power,no throttle response, no warning lights,no priors,wasn't able to move to shoulder.. very close to being rear ended..all of a sudden power returned.. happened 8-12 times trying to get home.. no warning lights .. after got home hooked up my diagnostic scanner and ECU had code P050400 and BCM had no codes but in pids list under stop lamp fuse pid read broken. Checked fuses non were bad.tested brake switch and tested ok and adjusted correctly. Wiring and connectors appeared undamaged...

20251106POWER TRAIN

Was traveling on interstate inside lane in heavy traffic and all of a sudden lost power,no throttle response, no warning lights,no priors,wasn't able to move to shoulder.. very close to being rear ended..all of a sudden power returned.. happened 8-12 times trying to get home.. no warning lights .. after got home hooked up my diagnostic scanner and ECU had code P050400 and BCM had no codes but in pids list under stop lamp fuse pid read broken. Checked fuses non were bad.tested brake switch and tested ok and adjusted correctly. Wiring and connectors appeared undamaged...

20251106ELECTRICAL SYSTEM

Was traveling on interstate inside lane in heavy traffic and all of a sudden lost power,no throttle response, no warning lights,no priors,wasn't able to move to shoulder.. very close to being rear ended..all of a sudden power returned.. happened 8-12 times trying to get home.. no warning lights .. after got home hooked up my diagnostic scanner and ECU had code P050400 and BCM had no codes but in pids list under stop lamp fuse pid read broken. Checked fuses non were bad.tested brake switch and tested ok and adjusted correctly. Wiring and connectors appeared undamaged...

20251031ENGINE

Overconsumption of oil, led to engine damage and stalling. Car struggles to start and there is an engine knock. Mechanic advised that the car is not drivable as it will stall while driving as it has done previously and there was a noticeable burning smell when the car was running. Car is under 100,000 miles

20251007ENGINE

I am the original owner of this car and get all my oil changes and regular maintenance on time. The car has 123k miles. I was getting into the freeway evening of 10/3 and my car stopped accelerating was making a loud noise so I pulled off to the side of the road. Per the Kia dealership service department my engine completely failed. This is a known issue with this year and model but Kia is not helping me in any way with the replacement of my engine. Please help.

20251001ENGINE

About September 6th I was driving my vehicle. It is a blue Kia forte 2017. I just had cleaned it at a local car wash. Prior to this 1-2 weeks before my ac had just started to blow hot air. So I recharged it with some recharge that I purchased a recharge can and my buddy Scott helped me put it into my low pressure air conditioning valve area. Soon after like I said when I was leaving a car wash. And I drove down to a gas station and as I start braking my car started running a lot slower. Then finally it almost halted and all the dash lights all illuminated everywhere. And I had to turn the wheel super slow as I approached the left turn into the gas station. And then I noticed my car had shut off completely. I screamed to the men that were at a gas pump feet away to help me push the car into the station. They finally ran over and pushed it into the station. Soon after we attempted with one car, and one truck we tried to jump start my car with the batteries. It didn’t start or turn the

Compare 2017KIAFORTE to Similar Vehicles

NHTSA Investigations 1 Open

View all investigations

Frequently Asked Questions

How many complaints does the 2017 KIA FORTE have?
The 2017 KIA FORTE has 419 NHTSA complaints, 38 crashes, 14 fires, 36 injuries, and 6 deaths reported.
What is the safety rating for the 2017 KIA FORTE?
The 2017 KIA FORTE received an overall NHTSA safety rating of 5/5, front crash rating of 4/5, side crash rating of 5/5, and rollover rating of 4/5.
Are there any recalls for the 2017 KIA FORTE?
Yes, the 2017 KIA FORTE has 3 recall(s). The most common affected component is AIR BAGS. Recalls are issued by NHTSA and manufacturers must provide a free remedy.
What are the most common problems with the 2017 KIA FORTE?
The most-complained component for the 2017 KIA FORTE is ENGINE with 139 complaints. Other frequently reported areas include UNKNOWN OR OTHER and ELECTRICAL SYSTEM.
Is the 2017 KIA FORTE safe to buy?
Review the complaint history, crash and fire reports, safety ratings, and recall status on this page to make an informed decision. The 2017 KIA FORTE has an NHTSA safety rating of 5/5. Compare with other model years using the links above.
Where does this data come from?
All complaint, recall, and safety rating data is sourced from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Complaints are filed by vehicle owners through NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation.

Vehicle Safety Guides

Data as of 2025. Sources: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) complaints database, NHTSA recall campaign API, NHTSA NCAP crash-test ratings, and NHTSA FARS for fatality cross-reference.